The Rule Breaker and the Puzzle
by sue-sylvester-shuffle
Summary: (AU of season one finale) Cameron happens to be at the door when House falls down. She's there to comfort him, whether he wants her there or not. They find out that both of them regret how their first date went, and decide to give it another try. With their date looming in the near future, how will House and Cameron's relationship progress? (HOUSECAM. UNFINISHED.)
1. The Fall

**AN:** So I finally finished this! I'll _probably _write a second chapter detailing the date they organize here (ooh spoilers!) but I can't say when it will be finished. Anyway... enjoy! (Also: no spoilers in the reviews please! I'm only on season three, episode seventeen! Late to join the party, I know!)

House's nimble fingers played over the piano keys. A soft music far too gentle for his sharp tongue filled the room. Playing the piano was easy for him. It always had been. As a child, he had picked up the skill quite quickly, and it had stuck with him for his whole life. If only the other aspects of his life were as simple… the aspects of his life that actually mattered.

The past few days treating Stacey's new husband had brought back memories of when he had first lost partial use of his own leg. He had been prepared to die instead of having them amputate his leg, but Stacey had ignored his wishes and made him go in for the surgery. The surgery that was supposed to be a happy medium, a compromise. He still kept his leg, but it had been left permanently damaged. He despised her for making him do it, but of course her intentions had been good. She had thought it would save him. Give him his life back. But the shitty life he was living now... a life of chronic pain, pills, and misguided pity found everywhere he looked... was that really living at all? Nothing good had come out of his life after he'd been crippled, and he would never really walk again. He knew that. Still, he had to see. Just to make sure.

House tossed his cane across the room. It landed on the carpet five feet away with a soft thud. He took a deep breath, bracing himself for the miracle that he didn't want to believe in. It had been years, and his disability hadn't gotten any better. Only a fool would think that after five years, something would change, and he didn't want to be that person. House had always prided himself on his bitter realism. Still, he had to see. Just to make sure. After all, no one would know.

Slowly, he moved his injured right leg. It throbbed, but he bit down on the inside of his lip and kept going. He was too mindlessly determined to stop now. He took one step with his injured leg. It hurt like all hell, but he did it. A small burst of happiness popped up inside of the sullen doctor, but he wasn't going to celebrate yet. Not until he was really walking.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. House ignored it. He took another step- and his leg buckled underneath him. Pain exploded through his crippled leg, and he grabbed a nearby armchair to break his fall. He couldn't stifle the little shout of pain that he made when he hit the ground, and he heard whoever was outside the door gasp.

"House? Are you okay? I'm coming in!"

Shit. It sounded like Cameron.

A few moments later, his doorknob started to jiggle and then the door swung open. Standing in the doorway was Cameron, holding a hair pin and proving his suspicions right. As soon as she saw him on the floor, her blue-grey eyes widened. She started toward him, but House snapped, "Don't touch me." and she stopped in her tracks.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Well, I just thought it would be fun to sit here on the floor." he replied scathingly. He tried to get back on his feet using the armchair, but the surface of the chair was slippery smooth and he couldn't manage it. Embarrassment flooded through him. He didn't want Cameron to see him as any weaker than she had already seen him. Having to walk with the cane was bad enough, and for some strange reason, he cared what she thought of him.

House felt her hands tentatively close around his arms. "Don't touch me!" he shouted again, whipping his head around to glare at her. His eyes were frigid, and she took a step back, looking alarmed.

"I-I'm sorry." stammered Cameron. "I didn't mean anything by it, I… I just don't like seeing you like this."

House turned back around, not wanting to look at her. He felt thoroughly humiliated.

"Please let me help you." she added.

"I don't need your help."

"I won't think any less of you, I promise." Cameron said. "We all need help sometimes. And you're disabled. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

Somehow, her words made him feel even worse. They were the truth. House sighed deeply, and then nodded, still not looking at her. "Fine."

He stared down pointedly at the chair as Cameron's hands returned to his arms. She pulled him to his feet, and helped him down into the armchair. Still, he avoided her gaze. Cameron went over and picked up his cane from where he had thrown it. She passed it back to him. "Here. I assume you'll be wanting this."

He took it wordlessly. Cameron looked down at him for a few seconds, and then sighed. "Okay, well, I suppose I'll be seeing you tomorrow at work." With that, she headed back toward the door. Her fingers played around the doorknob, but did not turn it. She was waiting for something. He wasn't sure what, but he did not want her to go either.

"You're leaving?" House asked.

"I didn't think you'd want my company." replied Cameron honestly. She turned the doorknob, and was halfway out the door when House suddenly called out to her.

"Cameron, wait."

His colleague stopped and turned around. "Yes? What is it?"

House took a deep breath, holding her gaze. He wanted to tell her not to leave, that he was going to be lonely without her, but the words seemed foolish and uncharacteristic of his tendency to push people away. She stared at him, her head slightly tilted. She knew the words that were on his tongue even if he couldn't say them. "I can stay if you want me to." she offered.

Looking away again, he gave her a nod. A small smile formed on her lips, and she came back toward him. She picked up the stool next to his piano and brought it over to where he was sitting in the armchair. "So, what happened?" asked Cameron, sitting down. "Did you just fall? You're usually steadier than that. Are you feeling dizzy?"

House couldn't tell her that he had been trying to walk. She would only give him that pitying smile and tell him what countless doctors had already told him, what he already knew himself. Everybody lies, he thought. "No, I'm not dizzy. I just tripped." he told her.

"Over what?"

"The carpet."

"Why was your cane all the way over there, then?"

"I threw it when I fell."

"Oh, come on, House. We both know that's a lie." Cameron said, raising one eyebrow.

"You think I'm lying to you?" he asked testily.

"Everybody lies." she recited. "That's what you always say. Who's to say you don't live by it yourself?"

House smirked. She had basically read his mind for the second time that night. "Clever girl."

"I know I am. Now, tell me what really happened."

"Fine. You've earned it." He crossed his arms, and looked up into her face. "I was trying to walk."

"You can walk." she replied readily.

"Not well. You know what I mean. Without the cane, without the limp. Really walk."

Cameron nodded, and sighed. "Right, I get it. Um… I suppose it didn't go well?"

"If it had gone well, I'd be running away from this conversation by now." House snapped, and then caught himself. "…Sorry."

"That's okay." Cameron smiled. "You know, no one thinks any less of you because you walk with a cane. They think less of you because you're such an ass all the time."

House paused for a second. Did she really think he cared about what people thought of him? "Thanks, but I don't care what people think of me." he reminded her scathingly. "I care about the pain."

"Right. Well, your leg will always hurt you." Cameron said. "It doesn't matter if you can walk without the cane, it's always going to hurt. And using the cane helps you walk, so that's a good thing, right?"

"Yeah."

Still smiling, Cameron placed her hand on top of his. Her touch was gentle, soft, and warm, but he tensed up. Real human contact was foreign to him now. She seemed to notice this, and her smile faltered slightly. "If you want me to leave now, I'll go. I wouldn't be insulted at all." she offered.

It had been years since anyone had touched him like that, and he was not ready to give away his heart so easily. Still, her smile made his icy walls melt a little bit. He definitely felt something for Cameron, but he wasn't sure how to deal with those feelings. Still, he shook his head. "No, you can stay."

"Okay." Cameron said, and just like that, her smile was back, bigger and brighter than before. House was glad that he was sitting down. Her smile made his chest ache, and he thought he would fall down again.

"So… why were you at my door, anyway?" he asked. "You just had a feeling I'd fall, or maybe you're from the future and you knew it was going to happen?"

She laughed softly. "No, I just wanted to come and see you. You know… after those things I said about you being too screwed up to love anyone… as soon as I walked away, I realized how horrible that sounded."

"I thought you said I wasn't too screwed up to love anyone, I just couldn't love you."

"That's right." She fidgeted a bit, her fingers tracing patterns on his hand. "Either way, I'm sorry. It was still mean."

He hesitated for a moment before asking, "Do you still love me, Cameron?"

"No."

Her answer was too quick, too forceful. Everybody lies. Or at least she just had. The crippled doctor laughed harshly. "You are the worst liar I have ever seen in my entire life, did you know that?"

Cameron flinched. "Okay, okay. Well… you know I love you, House. I have no idea why I do, but I do."

Something inside of House stirred, but he ignored it, letting the walls he held around him rise just a little bit higher, protect him a little bit more. "Love works in strange ways sometimes, doesn't it?" he said.

"No, love works in screwed-up ways." Cameron corrected him angrily. "I don't know why I still love you. You're awful. And we already proved that we were not going to work out. Not in that way, at least."

"Right." House looked away. Sometimes he regretted what had happened on their date. Maybe he would have liked to be in a relationship with her. After all, he still got a funny feeling in his chest every time he saw her smile.

"Of course, we could always try again." continued Cameron. "I mean, if you do have feelings for me…"

"I do have feelings for you, Cameron, but I don't know how to deal with them." admitted House. "You know I'm not good at… well, emotions."

She looked up at him, her face slightly flushed. "Well, I can help you sort things out then. Maybe we could try another date?"

He flashed her one of his rare smiles. "Okay."

Her eyes widened slightly; obviously she was not expecting him to say that. "What… really?"

"I said yes, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did." Cameron nodded. The smile flew back onto her face. "When should we go, then? I have something on Friday night, but other than that, I'm free. What about you?"

The notion that he had any sort of personal life to work around was laughable. His only plans were to pop Vicodin and drink scotch until he was dragged under by their influence, and going out with Cameron outshone this option any day. "I'm pretty much always free, Cameron. Wednesday night?" he suggested.

"That works for me." she said, and smiled. "I'm glad we're going to try this again, House."

House had to stop and force the words from his mouth that his instincts were begging for him to take back. "Me too."

"I really liked the corsage you got me last time. That was really sweet." continued the dark-haired doctor.

"Really? You didn't think it was idiotic?" For someone who had drank away his sense of shame, even House had felt a bit stupid because of that one.

"Oh, no. It was lovely. And very romantic." she added. "I still have it."

"You do?" He was surprised. Their first date had gone miraculously bad, but she had still kept a reminder of it. Cameron was truly a puzzle he would never solve.

"Part of me didn't want to let go." confessed Cameron.

He stared at her, taking in the pinkness of her cheeks, the way she was looking down at her hands in her lap, the sentimental frown tugging at the corners of her lips. "Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore." Before he could stop himself, House took both of her hands in his own.

"Oh." breathed Cameron, looking faint.

Then he took it a step further. He leaned in. She looked up, and he caught the momentary flash of shock on her face before his lips met hers.

Moments passed. It seemed like everything around them had been frozen, like a paused film. For just that second House forgot all about the pain in his leg, about Stacey, about the bottle of Vicodin stashed in his pocket. No, the only thing that mattered to him was Cameron. Her soft lips, the feel of her hands in his, the stray lock of dark hair that was brushing against his unshaven cheek. When he finally pulled away, she looked just as shocked as she had before he had kissed her.

"I wasn't expecting that." Cameron said.

"Neither was I, really."

"Then why did you do it?" she asked.

He raised his eyebrows, trying to mask the shadow of hurt that he felt. "I'm sorry, I thought you would have liked that."

"I did!" she reassured him quickly. "Don't worry. It's okay. I just… wasn't expecting that. So soon, I mean."

"What can I say? I'm a rule-breaking kind of guy."

Cameron smiled, and gave a soft little laugh. "I like that about you." She stood up, and dusted off her pants. "You should clean this place up a bit, House."

"Maybe. Where are you going?"

"It's getting late." she reminded him.

He looked down at his watch. The time read 11:36. "Shit. I didn't notice."

"So I should go." she continued. "I'll see you tomorrow at work, then. And… Wednesday night, of course."

He had gone miles with her, he had kissed her, but somehow it didn't feel like enough. "Who says you have to leave?"

Cameron's face reddened slightly. "House, I'm not staying the night. Not after the first kiss."

"It's not like we've just met. And it's not like I'll call you a whore."

"Someone else will. Chase or Foreman." replied Cameron tersely. "What will they think of me, going after you again?"

House got to his feet unsteadily and limped the few feet that separated them. "They'll understand." he murmured, wrapping his arms around her. Cameron looked up at him, her mouth opening slightly. "I'm quite the irresistible bastard, you know."

She laughed again, and gave a slight nod. "You make a good argument." she said, putting her arms around his waist.

"So you'll stay?"

"Just for tonight." she told him.  
"Good." he said. The last thing House remembered was how her stormy blue-grey eyes seemed to smile twice as much as her mouth did, before she stood up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his. After that, everything was a blur.


	2. Alarm Clocks and Kisses

Cameron left his house the next morning late enough that they had slept in a bit, but still early enough that she would get to work on time. Her waking up had gotten House awake as well, so he was only twenty minutes late getting to Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital as opposed to the two hours he usually lounged around for. Cuddy met him in the lobby, looking impressed.

"You're here early!" she remarked.

"I got a new alarm clock." House told her. Yes, he had. It was a dark-haired, blue-eyed, smiling alarm clock. "I like the noise it makes more than the old one."

"Well, if it got _you _up at this time, it must be pretty good." said Cuddy. "Maybe I should look into getting one of my own."

He smirked. "Yeah, I think you should." Laughing a bit to himself, he strolled off toward the elevator.

"And you sure seem happy today." Cuddy continued, following him. "What happened?" She laughed suddenly. "You get laid?"

"As a matter of fact, I did." House replied. The elevator came then, and he stepped into it, immensely enjoying the look of shock on her face as the door closed between them.

Cameron, Foreman, and Chase were in his office when he came up. House's eyes flicked immediately to Cameron, who gave him a little smile. He returned it, hoping that neither Chase nor Foreman would see. They didn't seem to, and then Foreman said, "We've got a case." He threw a file down on the table, shaking House from his thoughts.

"Tell me about it." he commanded, propping up his cane and sitting down.

"Thirty-seven year old female. Presented with a high fever of 102 and some strange mood swings." Foreman told him.

"Come on. You don't _really _need me for this, do you?"

"She has little blue spots all over her body." continued Foreman. He had saved the best for last.

Now _this _was interesting. House looked up at Foreman, raising one eyebrow. "Discoloured moles?"

"No, they're flat. Just… _spots._"

"Fine." Picking up the file, House got to his feet. "Chase, go to her house and check for environmental toxins. Foreman, go get some of her blood. Cameron… come into my office, I need to talk to you."

Chase and Foreman looked at each other. "Anything you need us for?" asked Chase.

"I just told you. Chase, go to the house. Foreman, get the blood."

"Can't Cameron go to the house?" Chase complained.

"No. I need to have a word with her." House snapped, and then promptly turned to Cameron and beckoned her. She stood up and followed him into his office, leaving Chase and Foreman to exchange another suspicious glance before leaving the room.

Cameron smiled at him. "Good morning."

"Good morning to you too." he responded.

"How is your leg?" she asked. "You know, after what happened last night?"

"You're not _that _good." he joked.

She went pink. "I didn't mean _that. _I meant your fall."

He smirked. "It's fine. No worse than usual."

"That's good." said Cameron. "Hey, I didn't think you would come in so early."

"I had a good reason to come in early." he shot back.

She blushed a little bit more. "To see me?"

"Well, you're a prettier sight than anything at my house. Unless," he said, "_you_ were at my house." He raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to speak.

Cameron laughed. "Wait until after our date for that."

House fake pouted. "Aww." he said jokingly. "Wednesday seems so far away."

"It'll come up quick. Tomorrow's Tuesday. Besides, you have a case to look at now."

"Chase and Foreman are on it right now."

"What can I do to help?" asked Cameron.

"Nothing right now." House told her. "But I think it would help both of us if we kissed."

The dark-haired, female doctor smiled. "Okay, I think I can manage that." She leaned in and pressed her lips to his. He felt her hands travel over his sides. Warmth spread through his body and House placed his own hands on her back, drawing her closer. Wednesday night couldn't come fast enough for him.

"House?"

It was a voice. A male voice. It wasn't her voice. _Shit._

Cameron pulled back immediately, whirling around all red-faced to see who had entered the office. It was Wilson, holding a stack of paperwork. The oncologist looked surprised. But unlike Cameron, House was not embarrassed in the least. "Give me a minute, Wilson. Can't you see we're kind of busy here?" he said.

"I see that." Wilson looked from his best friend to Cameron and back again, bushy eyebrows raised. "Could you not have put your tie on the door or _something?_"

"I'm not wearing a tie today. And the walls are clear, I figured you'd see and know to keep away." reasoned House.

"Right. Well, here, this is from Cuddy." Wilson put the stack of paperwork on a nearby bookshelf. "Er, I should get going. Have fun." He hurried out.

"Well, that was awkward." remarked House loudly. He looked back to Cameron. "Shall we continue?"  
"No!" she exclaimed. His eyebrows shot up at her shrill tone, and she took a deep breath. "I mean… no. Not right now. There's work to be done."

"You're such a party pooper, Cameron."

"I know." She laughed, and he could tell that she was still embarrassed. Nothing else was going to happen… not yet, anyway.

"Go help Foreman test the patient's blood." he told her.  
"Okay. Thank you." With one last lingering glance- evidently she, too, was eagerly awaiting their date- Cameron scurried off. House stood there, folded his arms, and ignored the paperwork that Wilson had dropped off.

xXx

That evening, House was in his office, throwing his ball up in the air and blasting music off of his record player, when his door opened. Hoping it was Cameron, he looked up. But it was just Foreman.

"What did you find?" asked House, pulling the needle off of the record.

"We found the source of the spots." replied Foreman.

"What was it?" House pressed him. "Don't leave me hanging, now. Was it cancer?"

Foreman shook his head. He reached into the pocket of his lab coat and drew out a Sharpie marker. "They were drawn on by her son while she was sleeping."

"Really?"

"Really."

House chuckled. "Great. It was the brat. So have you discharged her?"

"No. She still has the fever, and it's risen to 104. The mood swings are still happening too. Also, she seized when Cameron and I were testing the blood."

House furrowed his brow. "So she's still sick. Hmm."

"If I may ask…" began Foreman. "What did you want to speak with Cameron about earlier?"

"Her body odour problem. Where is Chase?"  
"He's still at her house, I think." Foreman still looked suspicious.

"Go find him, and then get the results of the blood testing." House ordered. "I'm going home now. Have them ready for when I come back tomorrow, all right?"

"Okay." Foreman nodded, and headed back out.

House tossed his ball into the air again. He could tell that Foreman was suspicious of his previous encounter with Cameron. It didn't bother him, though. Would it bother Cameron if the other two members of his team knew about them, and their upcoming date?

_No. _He had other things to think about, like the medical puzzle unfolding in front of him. Somehow, though, all that seemed a little less important.


	3. Turtle Speed

House woke up on Tuesday morning and the bed felt cold with just him in it. He rolled over and caught sight of his alarm clock. It read _8:13_. The doctor groaned and sat up. "Damn. Cuddy's going to be so pissed." he mumbled to no one in particular. Still, it was Tuesday, which meant just one day until his date with Cameron. As he swung his legs over the side of the bed, House's mind was fixed on the dress that Cameron had worn on their last date. It had been blue, and brought out her eyes, making them look like shards of sapphire, or puddles on a bright day. He wondered if she would wear it again, or a different one.

As his feet touched the ground and he started to stand up, a shooting pain coursed up his right leg. House found himself falling and he grabbed the headboard to stop himself. He cursed under his breath as he carefully eased himself into a painful standing position; he must have slept funny on his bad leg. House used the headboard as a handhold until he could reach his bedside table, and then the doorknob. They were like checkpoints; he passed the door, then the hallway, grasping at the walls like a madman; once he got his hands on his cane it was better. He stood hunched over it, panting. The thought of going to work was enough to make him down an entire bottle of Vicodin, but instead he forced some toast into himself before heading out the door.

When House finally made it into Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, the time on his watch was _8:49. _He sighed and began his slow limp toward the elevator.

"House!"

The loud voice from behind him made his heart sink. It was Cuddy. He willed himself to walk faster, but he was even slower than usual and it was no use. Cuddy appeared in front of him, crossing her arms and cutting him off. Her face was as angry as her shirt was low-cut, and he risked a quick glance at what was exposed of her breasts before trying to get past her. She mirrored his movements. Unfortunately for her, he was not in the mood to play around. "Move it." he growled.

"House, it's nine o'clock." she informed him exasperatedly.

"It's eight-fifty, actually."

"Oh, close enough. What happened to your new alarm clock? I thought it was oh so great." said Cuddy.

House thought briefly of Cameron, and that it was Tuesday. Only one more day until their date. He could last that long. "It just didn't go off this morning. Batteries must be dead. Let me _go_."  
She squinted at him suddenly, frowning. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

"Is your leg bad today?" she asked.

He didn't feel like arguing, or asking how she knew so quickly. "Yes. I think I slept funny on it or something." he admitted. "Can you just move it so I can go upstairs and sit down?"

"Yes, of course." Cuddy stepped aside, and he lumbered past her, hitting her with his shoulder on the way by.

His team was in his office when he got there, much like the previous day. "Here's the bloodwork you asked for." Foreman said, handing him a piece of paper. House took it and briefly scanned it.

"Her white count is pretty low." he commented, turning it over. The back was blank. "That's it?"

"That's it. It's got to be something else."

"We should do an MRI." suggested Chase.

House turned to him. "Where _were _you yesterday?"

"Checking the patient's place. Like you said." responded the Australian doctor.

"Well, you must have done a really, _really _thorough search." House remarked dryly. "What did you find?"

"Not much. I found some medicine, but most of it was for her son. I don't think any of it was medically relevant." reported Chase.

"How old is her son?"

"He's six." piped up Cameron. House glanced over at her. She was wearing a thick pink sweater under her lab coat, and she smiled when he met her gaze. If he hadn't been in so much pain, he might have risked a smile. Instead, he just took a moment to admire her.

"House, can we concentrate on the patient?" asked Foreman impatiently. "Chase is right, we should do an MRI."  
"Fine." House grumbled, tearing his eyes away from Cameron and turning back to Foreman. "Chase can go do that."

Chase stood up, taking the bloodwork from House and the patient's file from the table. "Foreman, you're a neurologist. Come with me."

"Fine." Foreman stood up. He headed toward the door with Chase on his heels. Once they had gone, House collapsed into one of the chairs with a groan. He massaged his leg, leaning his head back and closing his eyes.

"Are you okay?" asked Cameron, coming over to sit on the chair next to his. "You don't look so good. Is your leg bad today?"

"Yeah." he confessed.

"Anything I can do to help?"

"No."  
She frowned. "Are you sure? I could get you something."

"I don't want anything. I just don't want to walk around like this." he told her.

Cameron smiled sympathetically. "I'm sorry, House. If I could carry you, I would." she joked.

He snickered. "Right, right. Now _that _wouldn't be degrading at all, for either of us."

"Hey, I could get you a wheelchair if you wanted." she suggested.

House's answer was immediate. "No way." Having to use the cane was bad enough. Being in a wheelchair would put him down just that much more.

"You just said you didn't want to walk around." Cameron reminded him.

"I know I did, but no way. It would be humiliating."

"I thought you didn't care what people thought about you."

"I don't." House said. "But that's pushing it a little."

"Oh, come on. It wouldn't be that bad. Just for today, House." Cameron pressed him. "That way, you'll be in better shape for tomorrow. I'll even push you around if you want."

He had to admit, the idea was a little tempting. A day off of his feet so that he would be the best he could be for his date with Cameron? Just for a day…

"Okay." he conceded finally. "Get the wheelchair and I'll use it. Just for today, though."

"Great!" Her face lit up, and she beamed. He felt breathless for a moment, and not because of the pain. "I'll go get one. Be back in five minutes."

"Okay." House said again, and watched her as she headed out excitedly, a bounce in her step. He stared at the door long after she had gone, and sighed. All she wanted was to take care of him, to make sure he was as comfortable as he could be. _She had even offered to push him in the wheelchair. _It wasn't something he needed, but maybe she needed it, or maybe she just wanted it really bad. Either way, he would indulge her for a while.

When Cameron returned, pushing a wheelchair in front of her, he stood up, holding the side of the table tightly with both hands. Cameron quickly moved the chair he had been sitting on, and put the wheelchair in its place. "There you go. Sit down."

He did as she told him to. Once he had done this, Cameron took hold of the handles at the back and pulled him away from the table. "I can move myself, you know." House said dryly, tilting his head back to look at her.

"I know." she replied, smiling. "I don't mind."

"Well, I do."  
"I thought you were going to let me push you around."

He pursed his lips. "People would think I was a patient."

"They wouldn't think that. You aren't wearing a gown." she reminded him.

"Well, I'm not a hormonal ballroom dancer, so that's no wonder." House snapped. All of a sudden, the image of her disappointed face from their last date popped into his head, and he wasn't sure why. "I didn't mean that." he added quickly, looking back down.

"That's okay." said Cameron, but he could hear a quaver of hurt in her voice.

House took a deep breath before speaking up, tilting his head back again so that he could look into her eyes. "Hey. If I let you push me around, will you take that sad look off of your face?"

Cameron laughed softly. "Depends. How long do I get to push you around for?" she asked.  
"Depends. How happy are you going to look? Because after a certain amount of glee, it starts to get a little bit creepy."

She smiled. "Okay, here. I look happy now."

"That's better. Not creepy at all."

"Can I push you around now?" she asked.

House nodded. "Only if you go as fast as a race car." he joked.

Cameron let out a short little breathy laugh. "Okay." She pushed him toward the door, and he eased it open with his hand. Once they were out of his office, Cameron reached down and gently pushed his chin up so that he was looking at her. "Are you ready?" she asked.

"Ready for what?" said House. Her hand on his chin was making him feel a bit flustered, which annoyed him. _Stupid, stupid Greg_.

"You wanted to go fast, like a race car."

"I was _joking._" he told her.

Cameron looked put out. "Oh."

"No, wait. I didn't think _you _would do it." House added quickly. "You're going to go fast?"

"If you want me to." she said.

The older doctor smirked. "Hell yeah." he responded confidently.

Cameron grinned. "Here goes nothing." she said. First, she kicked off her high heels, and propped them up neatly by the door. Typical Cameron. Then she started pushing him down the hallway, and broke into a run.

House had to admit that it was fun. People in the hallways were hurrying to flatten themselves against the walls or dive into nearby rooms as the two of them sped by. Cameron shouted quick apologies to everyone they passed, but House just sat there, gripping the sides of the chair. It had been years since he had moved so fast; it was almost like he was running again…

"Is this fast enough for you?" Cameron gasped out after about a minute or so.

"No!" he cried.

"You… You want me to go _faster?_"

"Remember who you're talking to!" he exclaimed, leaning his head back to look at her. "As far as I'm concerned, this is not race car speed."

"I'll try!" Cameron promised. He could hear her feet pounding on the ground, and then they were whipping through the halls even faster. House let out a bark of maniacal laughter. It was great.

They turned a corner, and the wheels on one side of the chair went up for a second, only to come banging back down to the ground moments later. All of a sudden, House saw someone standing in the middle of the hallway. "Move it, moron!" he shouted. The words had already left his lips before he realized that it was Cuddy. Her arms were crossed and she looked furious. She didn't look like she was going to move, either.

"Can you hit her?" he asked Cameron sarcastically. The dark-haired immunologist was already skidding to a stop. Somewhere along the way he felt Cameron's weight drop away and heard a _thump _as she hit the ground. House let out a wild whoop of laughter. He put his own feet out, trying to stop the wheelchair. It zoomed right over to Cuddy with him in it. The dean of medicine put out one of her feet, stopping the chair in its tracks. Her heel was right between his legs.

"Sorry. I forgot you banned fun in this hospital." House said dryly.

Cuddy opened her mouth as if she was going to say something, but stopped and pursed her lips again. Her eyes travelled up over his head, and seconds later a panting, dishevelled Cameron raced up behind him.

"I'm so sorry, Dr. Cuddy!" she exclaimed. "I didn't mean for that to get out of hand. It was my fault."

"Ignore her." House cut in. "It was me, but you knew that already. Just put it on my tab."

"I don't mind you using the wheelchair, House." began Cuddy coldly. "In fact, I'm sure it's good for your leg. But you put yourself and other lives in danger by doing that."

"It won't happen again." promised Cameron.

Cuddy nodded. "I trust you, Dr. Cameron." She looked back to House and frowned. "House, I… do not trust you. Keep an eye on him, will you, Dr.?"

"All right. Thank you." Cameron said.

"Aw, just 'cause I'm a cripple, I need a babysitter?" House complained loudly and sarcastically. A few people looked over. Cuddy cringed visibly.

"Go back to your office, House." she told him tersely. After giving Cameron an amicable nod, Cuddy walked briskly away.

House turned around in the chair to look at Cameron. "You okay?"

"Pardon?"

"You fell." he reminded her. "It was pretty _rad, _but are you hurt?"

"No." She dusted herself down, and raised one hand to unconsciously tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm okay."

"Good." He put his hands down on the wheels of the chair and began to wheel himself down the hallway. Cameron followed in her sock feet.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Going back to my office, like that troll told me to. Or did I just imagine her?" He made an overly exaggerated puzzled face.

"I can still push you." offered Cameron.

"I think we both know how badly _that_ ended." said House.

Cameron smiled. "I'll go slower this time."

"Like, old granny speed?"

"Like turtle speed."

House gave a low little laugh. "All right. Turtle speed it is."  
She put her hands back on the handles and started pushing him back toward his office. House looked back down, and realized that he was smiling. Immediately he covered his mouth with his hand, pretending to clear his throat. No one could see that.

**AN: **I hope you all enjoyed chapter three! And just saying, that chapter could be perceived as a bit OOC for Cameron and House. I didn't think it was that bad though. Have a nice day everyone! xoxo sue-sylvester-shuffle


	4. Clinic Duty

When Foreman and Chase returned with the results from the MRI, they were met with the surprising sight of House and Cameron tossing his ball back and forth. Still, it wasn't the first thing they questioned.

"You're in a wheelchair." remarked Chase.

"Very observant of you." House replied dryly. "You should be a detective, instead of wasting your time here."

"Did something happen while we were getting the MRI results?" Chase asked.

House glanced sidelong at Cameron, thinking of their stunt in the hallway. "No. My leg is just shittier than usual today, and Cameron here suggested I use a wheelchair. She's as smart as she is pretty, you know."

It didn't sound too far off from something he would say normally, so neither Foreman nor Chase had a reaction to his remark about Cameron. She, however, blushed and looked pointedly at a wall. "Well, feel better soon." said Chase without much feeling. "We got the results of the MRI."

"Don't leave me hanging."

"The MRI didn't show anything abnormal." Foreman cut in. "It's like there's nothing wrong with her."

"But there is." House muttered quietly to himself. "Hmm."

"She's having seizures. Could it be adult onset epilepsy?" Chase suggested.

"She has a fever, doesn't she? Epilepsy wouldn't cause that." Cameron reminded her colleague. "It must be some sort of infection. Autoimmune, maybe?"

"And the mood swings are still happening." Foreman pointed out. "She almost punched out Chase, and seconds later was trying to feel him up."  
"Really?" House laughed derisively. "Oh, man. What I would have given to see that!"

"It wasn't funny." Chase said sorely.

"Sounds pretty funny to me." House responded, and shrugged.

"What should we try next?" asked Cameron.

House looked over at her. "Cameron, go check on her son. Make sure he hasn't been showing any symptoms that we may have written off. Chase said he had a lot of medication at the house. Maybe he's sick too."

"Okay." Cameron said, standing up. She had his ball in her hands, and she threw it back to him. He caught it effortlessly in one hand.

"Foreman, go check the patient's urine." House continued to rattle off instructions. "And then you can do a lumbar puncture."

Foreman nodded and stood up as well. Chase frowned. "What about me?" he asked.

"I don't know. Do something." said House. "I have clinic duty right now." He wheeled himself toward the door. Foreman opened it for him, and the grumpy doctor passed through without thanking him. Cameron and Foreman were behind him for a bit, but they went down another hallway as House got into the elevator.

Down in the lobby, he headed over to the desk. "Dr. House? There's a patient waiting for you in exam room three." one of the nurses told him, handing him a file. House took the file and wheeled himself over to the exam room. When he got inside, he saw a teenage girl sitting on the cot. She had curly hair and was looking down at her cell phone. House closed the door behind him, and the girl looked up.

"Hello. Dr. House here." he said. "Tell me what's wrong with you so I can go eat my lunch."

The girl frowned. "It's my hands. They're always bleeding."

House raised his eyebrows. He had been in a pretty good mood after his fun earlier with Cameron, but he was starting to settle slowly back into his usual, sullen self. "By any chance, have they been cut with something? That normally explains cuts."

"No. They just bleed." the girl told him. "Usually around my fingernails."

House wheeled himself closer and beckoned for her to put her hand out. She extended her arm, and he took her hand in his own. He inspected it closely. "It's not bleeding now." he pointed out.

"Yes, it is. Look." She gestured with her free hand. There was some crusty red around one of her nail beds. House peered at it closer, and dislodged some with his own fingernail.

"That's nail polish." he told her flatly.

"Is it?" The girl looked surprised. "Oh. Sorry. You know, I did wonder, 'cause I painted my nails last-"

House turned himself around and wheeled out of the room before she could finish her sentence. Patients like that made him want to pull what was left of his hair out. He wanted to go back up to his office and waste time on his computer, but Cuddy was already mad at him for being late, so it was probably best for him to do his clinic hours. Or at least some of them. There was another patient waiting in exam room one, so he went in there. A greying, middle-aged man was sitting on the cot this time.

"Can you tell me when the doctor will be in?" asked the man, looking down at his watch.

"I am the doctor." House said flatly.

The man looked him up and down and shook his head. "Nice try."

"Excuse me. Cripples can't be doctors?"

"I never said that." the man replied. "But if you are a doctor, where's your lab coat?"

House rolled his eyes. There was a lab coat hanging on the coatrack in the exam room, so he grabbed it and pulled it down. "Here."

The patient squinted at it. "Your name is Dr. Lisa Cuddy?"

Damn. House swallowed his anger and frustration before answering. "Yes. My parents always wanted a girl. Now tell me what's wrong with you or I'm just going to leave."

"It's my hair. It's falling out." the man told him.

House stopped trying to wrestle himself into Cuddy's lab coat while sitting down and stared up at the man incredulously. How he could have been born so goddamn smart when some people had been born so miraculously stupid, he would never understand.

"It couldn't be that you're balding, could it?" he asked sardonically.

The man shook his head. "No, it couldn't. I'm not an idiot, you know. My father never went bald. He had a full head of hair until the day he died. So did my grandfather."

"You never thought you could be the one to break the cycle?"

The man shook his head again, more vigorously this time. "No."

House rolled his eyes. "Okay. Come down here." he told the man.

"Why?" the man asked.

"Because you wanted me to look at your hair, and in case you hadn't noticed, Guy Who Says He's Not an Idiot, I'm in a goddamn wheelchair." snapped House, elongating his words in a condescending way.

The man turned slightly red, but he stepped down off of the cot and bent down. His hair was greying and very sparse, but House managed to grab a good hold and gave it a sharp tug.

"Ouch!" exclaimed the man.

"There you go. It's not falling out, you're just going bald." House informed him. "You should be talking to your barber, not to me."

"But my dad-"

"Maybe Mommy cheated and Daddy's not your real dad." House growled.  
The man glared at House. "Are you sure you're a real doctor?"

"If I'm not, I don't know why I have a doctorate." retaliated House. "Now get out of here."

After treating two more patients with idiotic symptoms, House headed back upstairs in the elevator. Any more and he would start blowing up at the patients, possibly literally. Foreman met him in the hallway when he wheeled himself out of the elevator.

"What did the lumbar puncture tell you?" House asked.

"Couldn't do it. She seized again." Foreman reported. "I couldn't get the needle in."

Just then, Cameron jogged up to them. "Hey. I just finished talking to James." she said.

"Wilson?" House asked.

"No. The patient's son. Six year old James." Cameron corrected him.

"Oh." said House. "Find out anything helpful?"

"Yes, actually." Cameron continued. "He said that the medication is for his asthma. A few days before his mother was brought in, James said he saw her taking some of it. He asked her why at the time, and he said she called him by a different name."

House thought about this for a moment. "What if the fever is just a reaction from the medicine she took? The rest of the symptoms… seizures, mood swings, and the confusion or long term memory loss… it's neurological."

"But the MRI didn't show anything." Foreman reminded him.

"Do it again." House ordered.

"All right." Foreman gave his boss a nod and headed off. Cameron looked over at House.

"Want me to push you?" she asked.

"Didn't anyone tell you not to push cripples?" he joked.

"Yes, but really."

"Only because you asked so nicely." House responded, smirking at her. She smiled back, twice as sincere, and took the handles.

"You were doing clinic duty, weren't you?"

"Ugh. Unfortunately."

"What happened this time?"

"Just a crap load of colossal idiots. Balding guy who thinks his hair falling out means he's dying… girl who thinks she's bleeding but it's really cherry blossom nail polish… and like ten overprotective moms with babies."

Cameron laughed. "Are you serious about the nail polish girl?"

"Yeah, and I wish I wasn't. God, I worry for that generation."

Another soft laugh came from above him. The sweet sound made House's heart flutter. Stupid, stupid, goddamn idiot Greg. he thought darkly to himself. You're supposed to want into her pants. "Me too." said Cameron. "So what do you think is wrong with Susan?"

"Who?"

"Our patient." she told him, without making a fuss over his not knowing the patient's name.

"Oh, her. Well, something neurological, maybe a brain tumor."

"I hope not." Cameron said anxiously. "Her son is so nice."

"Right now I just want a diagnosis." House remarked. "As soon as we know what's wrong with her, we can start treating her. Then she can go back to playing with little Jimmy."

"You're right." Cameron agreed. They entered his office. Just then, Cameron spoke up again. "House, do you think your leg will be better for tomorrow? For our date?"

"I hope so." he replied honestly.

"We can always reschedule if you want to." she offered, coming around from behind his wheelchair and sitting down on a chair to face him.

"No, tomorrow's fine."  
She paused for a moment before asking, "Are you excited?"

"Excited?" he repeated. "Yes, of course. In fact, Little Greg is-"

"I didn't mean that kind of excited." Cameron said. "You know what I meant."

House decided to put his sarcasm on hold for a second. He tried to straighten his smirk away. "I don't know if I'm excited, Cameron. I mean, I'm happy to be going out with you and all. But I feel like I'm going to screw it up again."

"I'm sure you won't." she reassured him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "And you didn't screw it up last time, either."

"Oh, don't lie to me. Didn't I tell you how bad you were at it?" said House, raising one eyebrow. "I did screw it up last time. I said some horrible things to you… I was too brutally honest, and I screwed up the whole night."

"Well, at least you weren't lying to me, or pretending to be someone you weren't."  
"I was just pushing you away. And you looked so goddamn disappointed afterward." He could still see her face in his mind, as if the date had been just yesterday. How the sparkle had left her grey-blue eyes, how the smile had slowly slipped off of her face. He hadn't felt even human afterward.

Cameron was silent for a moment. Finally, she responded with, "You're not going to screw it up this time. This time, I can tell you like me back."

"I liked you then, too, Cameron." House told her miserably. "That's why I was pushing you away."

She gave him a sad smile. He looked up at her, unsure of what was going through her head. Then, the immunologist leaned forward and planted a kiss on his forehead. He closed his eyes. She pulled away.

"I think tomorrow night is going to be really special." she whispered.

When he opened his eyes again, she was gone.


	5. Checkmate

"I'm going on a date with Cameron." House announced out of the blue.

Wilson stopped trying to take back the half sandwich House had taken from his plate and stared at his friend incredulously. "Really?"

"Why are you surprised? You saw us making out yesterday."

"Yeah. _Making out. _Not actually dating." Wilson leaned back, folding his arms and smiling. "I'm impressed, House. Could it be you finally want something more?"

"Oh, shut up." House took a large bite of the sandwich.

"Come on. _You _brought it up." Wilson reminded him. "So, when's the big day?"

"Tomorrow night. I'm picking her up at seven-thirty."

"That's pretty soon. So… do you like her?"

House rolled his eyes. "If I didn't like her, I wouldn't be going out with her."

The oncologist smiled. "That's sweet. And you just _know _Cameron loves you back."

"Right."

"What are you going to wear?" asked Wilson.

"Oh wait, do you think she expects me to wear clothes?"

Wilson chuckled. "No, really. What are you going to wear?"

"Isn't that what the girl gets asked?"

"_House._"

"_Fine. _I'm going to wear a shirt and a tie." House told him finally.

"Okay. See, now we're getting somewhere." said Wilson. "Where are you two going?"  
"You know that fancy place near Cameron's? Sounds French, I think."

"Yes, I think so." Wilson replied. "Well, this is certainly something, House. It's been a while since you've been on a date! Not since… well… your last date with Cameron."

House nodded.

"Well, I'm glad you're going out again." Wilson said, finishing off the last few bites of his sandwich. "I think this is going to be good for you. Both of you." He stood up, picking up both his plate and House's own empty plate. "Here, I'll take this."

"I bet Foreman has the results from the newest MRI scan now." said House, wheeling himself away from the table they had been sitting at.

"Good luck on your date, House." Wilson called over.

"It's not until tomorrow night, stupid."  
"I know that."  
House rolled his eyes as he wheeled himself toward the elevator. Typical Wilson.

His entire team met him at the elevator when he got back up to the right floor. "Whoa." he remarked. "You guys forgot to yell _surprise. _Hey, I'll go back down, we'll try it again."

None of them were smiling. "Look at this." said Chase, and handed him the MRI results.

House looked down. "They're blurry. Redo them."  
"No, no, look. She seized while she was in the MRI machine. It kept taking pictures, though. Look here." Cameron pointed to a spot on one of the papers. House squinted at it.

"That's a brain tumor." he deduced.

"Right." Foreman nodded. "It's in a pretty good place, though. We should operate as soon as possible."

"I wonder why it didn't show up on the first MRI, though." Cameron wondered out loud.

"Maybe it swells when she seizes." suggested Chase.

"Could be." murmured House. "Either way, get her down to an OR, stat."

The three of them nodded in unison, and rushed off. House wheeled himself into his office. It had been a long day. At least his leg was better while he was off his feet. He would wait until his patient's surgery was finished, and then go home. _There was just one more night until his date with Cameron. _The older doctor allowed himself a small smile. It was close. And, he had a diagnosis. The game had been played. Check, and mate.

He had been sitting there for about ten or fifteen minutes when a small voice shook him from his silent thoughts. "Um… Mister?"

House turned his head toward the door. A small boy was standing there. "Hi there." said House cautiously. "What are you doing here?"  
"The nice doctor lady said you were the big doctor." the little boy told him.

House frowned. "Nice doctor lady? Did she have brown hair by any chance, and a pink sweater?"  
The child nodded. "Uh-huh. Is she your friend?"

_Of course it was Cameron. _"Yes." House replied, not wanting the kid to ask more questions. "And who are you?" He remembered then that the patient, Susan, had a six-year-old son. "Wait, don't tell me. Your name is James, isn't it?"

The boy nodded and smiled. He was missing a few teeth. "Yeah! How did you know?"

"Well, I'm a doctor. That means I'm psychic." explained House patiently.

"Does that mean you know what's wrong with my mummy?" asked James.

"I think so." House replied. "Now why don't you run along and go find the nice doctor lady? She's probably looking for you."

"She just brought my mummy into surgery." the boy said, pronouncing 'surgery' like 'sur-gurry'.

"Oh." House was silent for a moment. Then he continued, "Hey, James, do you know, my one of my best friends is also named James. You want to meet him?"

"Okay." responded the little boy.

House grinned mischievously. "All right then. Come on." He wheeled himself toward the door. James moved out of the way so that he could get through the doorway.

"What's this?" asked James, poking the side of the wheelchair as they went down toward Wilson's office. House quickly moved the boy's hand so he wouldn't get it caught in the wheel.

"It's a wheelchair." he explained. "I can't walk as well as you can, so I sit in this."

"Oh." The boy looked interested. "Why can't you walk?"

"Well, I _can _walk. Just not well. Usually I walk with a cane."

James's eyes lit up. "Like my grandpa!" He giggled.

House had to fight down the urge to shout at the child. "Yeah, like your grandpa." he replied through gritted teeth. Except he was willing to bet that the kid's grandpa didn't have chronic leg pain, and that he was _old. _Seventy years old. Eighty. Maybe even ninety. House was not even fifty yet.

They arrived at Wilson's office. House hammered on the door a few times before opening it. Wilson was sitting at his desk. He looked up, surprised, as House entered with James behind him.

"Who's this?" asked the oncologist, putting down his pen to look from House to James's round face, and back again.

"This is James." said House. "Big James, meet Little James." The younger James giggled. With that, House turned around and wheeled out of Wilson's office. Once he had gotten roughly ten feet away, he grinned, thinking that he had left the kid behind. However, a few seconds later, there was the clatter of little footsteps behind him, and the six-year-old appeared beside House again.

"I thought you were going to hang out with him." House complained.

"But you're my mummy's doctor." James said. "I want to go see her when she gets out of sur-gurry."

House rolled his eyes. He couldn't argue with that. "Okay, here's what's going to happen. We're going to go down to the cafeteria and I'm going to buy you a cookie so you'll stop annoying me. Then I'll bring you down to the OR and we'll wait there for your mom. Sound good to you?"

"Okay. What's an OR?"

"An operating room."

"What's an operating?"  
House took a deep breath. The end of the surgery couldn't come fast enough.


	6. Pizza and Jennifer Aniston's Nipples

**AN: **Sorry for the long wait. Almost two months between the fifth chapter and this one! I am so sorry. I've been swamped with schoolwork in this new semester and I'm not going to lie, I've rewatched four seasons of FRIENDS since they put it on Netflix on New Years. That explains the one lonely Chanoey fic I posted and the FRIENDS references at the end of this chapter. (Spoiler: House and Cameron watch an episode.) But anyway, here's the new chapter. I'll be working away slowly at chapter number seven. Until then, ENJOY! And have a great evening. From sue-sylvester-shuffle

-

House sat in the waiting room with James for a while. The boy finished his cookie, and the apple juice that House had also bought for him. And then, about half an hour later, Susan came out of surgery.

"It went well." Cameron informed House as Chase, Foreman, and two nurses pushed Susan's cot down the hallway with James on their heels. "We removed the tumor and it looks like she'll be okay."

"We'll just have to see how she is when she wakes up." said House.

"You're right. Hey, were you just with her son?" Cameron asked.

"Yeah. Apparently _someone _sent him off to find me." He glared jokingly at her.

"Sorry about that. He was just… _there, _and we couldn't have him come into surgery…"

"I tried to give him to Wilson, but the brat wanted to stick with me. So I had to buy him food." House grouched.

"Oh no." Cameron responded dramatically, her gloved hands flying to her face. "You had to buy the kid a five dollar sandwich? Horrible."

"It was a cookie and some juice, actually. Four dollars."

"Even worse!"

House cracked a smile. "You owe me one. How about you give me a lift home?" he suggested. "Patient's out of surgery now. I have no reason to be here."

"Sounds fair." said Cameron. "Are you going to bring the wheelchair home?"

"No, I'll leave it here. Wait, my car's here. Can you pick me up in the morning too?"

"Sure." The immunologist smiled. "Let's go get our stuff from upstairs, then I'll bring my car around to the front. Sound good?"  
"Okay."

Cameron wheeled him over to the elevator. They went back up to his office. House grabbed his cane and his coat, while Cameron milled around grabbing her stuff as well. The older doctor looked down at his cane and instantly thought back to the conversation he'd had with James earlier that day.

"_Why can't you walk?" _the boy had asked.

"_Well, I can walk. Just not well. Usually I walk with a cane." _he'd responded patiently.

"_Like my grandpa!" _James had giggled.

House's stomach tightened. He glanced out at Cameron, who was pulling on her coat. She was _young. _Hell, she probably wasn't even thirty years old yet. He definitely had twenty years on her. What was _she _doing, going out with someone like _him? _

Like a chain reaction, the awful things he'd said to her on their first date came back to him. "_I'm twice your age, I'm not great looking, I'm not charming, I'm not even nice. What I am is what you need. I'm damaged." _Immediately House cringed, just thinking about it. He hadn't meant to hurt her. Well… maybe he had. To push her away. That's what he did. He had forgotten how to do anything but self medicate and push people away. Cameron was no exception.

"You ready?" Cameron's voice shook him out of his thoughts. House looked up to see her standing beside him, smiling.

"Yeah." he replied. "Let's go."

She wheeled him back down to the lobby. When they got back down there, House gingerly stood up out of the wheelchair. The pain was still bad, but not as excruciating as it had been that morning when he had first gotten out of bed. Spending the day in the wheelchair had helped. "Are you all right?" asked Cameron, passing him his cane and moving the wheelchair away from him.

"Fine." House said, shifting his weight onto his cane.

"Good. I'll go pull my car around now. Put your coat on, I think it's cold out there."

"Okay, _mom._" he joked.

Cameron laughed softly as she walked outside. House leaned his cane up against the front desk as he pulled on his coat. Once he had it on, House limped out of the building. Soon enough, Cameron pulled up in her car. The older doctor opened the passenger seat door and sat down.

"So you said you were picking me up tomorrow for our date, right?" Cameron asked as House did up his seatbelt.

"Yeah. At seven-thirty."

"Okay." She looked pleased as she pushed her foot on the gas, and they started to drive off.

"It's going to be much better than our last date." he promised her.

"I know. You don't need to keep apologizing for that."

"I'm not _apologizing. _I just don't want you to think I'm going to be an ass this time. Maybe then you wouldn't want to go."

Cameron laughed. "House, don't talk like that."

"Fine."

They continued driving. "I bought a new dress for tomorrow." Cameron told him after about a minute.

"God, Cameron, you didn't have to do that."

"I know I didn't, but I wanted to. It was nice, and I wanted to treat myself." she said. "What are you going to wear?"

"Ugh, Wilson asked me the same thing. Maybe I'll steal one of his suits."

"You told Wilson?" Cameron glanced over at him.

"Of course I did. Come on, he's _Wilson. _I tell him everything." House reminded her. After a few seconds, he added, "Are you upset?"

"No. Sorry, I just didn't expect you to spread the news around." Cameron replied. "It's okay, though. I don't mind at all."

"Why wouldn't I tell people?" House asked. "You're _way _out of my league. It's great."

Cameron laughed. "Okay, okay. So, what did Wilson say when you told him?"  
"A lot of gushy, romantic shit. I wasn't listening." House said. "So, uh, you didn't tell _anyone _about our date?" He found himself more insulted than he should be.

"I don't know who I would tell."

"Chase? Foreman?" He was getting desperate. She was ashamed to be going out on a date with him. No, it was more than that. _She was ashamed of him._

"They would just laugh." Cameron shrugged. "I want to feel good about tomorrow night. I want to be excited. But they'll just talk me out of it. I know they will."

He pursed his lips, trying to hold back the self-hatred that was threatening to spill into his thoughts like intrusive oil into a water supply. "Cameron, if you don't want to do this… you don't have to."

"Oh, no, no, I do want to!" she exclaimed. "Remember, I was the one who suggested we go out on another date. I _want _this, House."  
"Okay." He turned slightly and glanced out the window. Just then, Cameron laughed softly. "What's so funny?" asked House darkly.

"Nothing. It's not funny. Or, it shouldn't be." she replied. "It's just… well, I never thought you'd be the kind of person to be so insecure about something so trivial."

"What?" He swivelled his head back around, eyes sharp. "Insecure? I am _not _insecure. I just know how badly I screwed up last time and I also know how much better you could do than me. You could have someone younger. Someone nicer. I know I'm on thin ice, Cameron. And it's damn hard to walk on ice with a cane."  
She paused for a moment. "Can't you walk without a cane in your own metaphor?"

"No." he said stubbornly. His thoughts flashed briefly back to his fall, which had been the event to throw fuel on the flames of his and Cameron's romance. He was a realist. Even in metaphors, even in his imagination, he walked with a cane. It was an inescapable fact.

"Okay." She sighed, and stared pointedly out the windshield. "Have it your way."

They drove in silence all the way to House's apartment. Once they pulled up to the curb, the older doctor undid his seatbelt and muttered a quick thank you. He reached for the door, but Cameron stopped him by grasping his wrist. He glanced over at her, looking confused.

"We had such a nice day today. I don't want to leave it like this." Cameron reasoned.

"Okay." he replied. "Do you want to come in, then?"

Cameron nodded. "I'd like that."

They got out of the car and walked up the stairs to the door of House's apartment together. Walking up the steps made House's bad leg burn, but he pursed his lips and kept going, not wanting to worry Cameron. At the top of the steps, he groped around in the pockets of his coat for his keys. Once they were in his hand, he unlocked the door and they went inside.

"Home sweet home." sighed House.

Cameron smiled. "Looks the same to me. Isn't it weird that the last time I was here was when I resigned?"

House shrugged. He had been trying not to think of that night ever since he had gotten her to come back to the hospital. He had mended the broken situation and was now trying to get over it. Like their disastrous first date, his reaction to Cameron's resignation had been one of the many screw-ups that he regretted. He hadn't wanted her to leave, of course. She had been there in front of him, her dark hair spilling out over her shoulders, looking up at him with those blue-grey eyes that he so wanted to lose himself in. Really, at the time part of him had wondered if the whole thing was a Vicodin-induced nightmare. Cameron would never leave. She just wouldn't. But there she had been. On the verge of leaving. She'd held out her hand to him, like an offering, an act of peace. He hadn't been able to take it. Why he hadn't been able to still haunted him. Maybe he just hadn't been able to wrap his maladaptive mind around the thought that _Cameron was leaving._

"I'm just glad you're back now." he responded slowly.

"Me too." Cameron said. "Come on, let's go sit down."

The older doctor nodded. "Here, I'll take your coat." He beckoned for her to take it off. She quickly obliged, handing it to him.

"That was almost gentlemanly." remarked Cameron.

"Keyword is _almost._" he replied, hanging it up and starting to take off his own coat. She smiled.

The two of them headed over to his couch. House collapsed onto the cushions with a sigh of relief. "Good to be off your feet?" asked Cameron.

"You know it." He tossed his feet on the edge of the table. "So what do you want to do? Order food, watch some TV, or get right to the sex?"

She didn't look fazed at all. She was used to him by then. "I'm hungry, actually. I could go for some food."

"All right." said House. He reached over to the side table beside the couch, where he grabbed the phone and a small stack of takeout menus. "What are you in the mood for? Pizza, Chinese, pick your poison."

"Pizza sounds good."

"Okay." He raised the phone to his ear. "Yeah, hey. We'll have a medium cheese pizza with… whatever the lady wants." He held the phone out to Cameron, who took it with a smirk and rattled off a number of toppings.

"And mushrooms!" House shouted at the phone as she was hanging up. "Ugh. Think they caught that?"

"I hope so." chuckled Cameron, handing him the phone. "Otherwise, they'll have to face your wrath."

"Right. The wrath of a forty-something cripple with a cane." he joked.

She pursed her lips. "I wish you wouldn't call yourself that, House."

"What? A cripple?" He gave her a wry look. "It's what I am."

"You're _disabled._" she corrected him. "Don't say cripple. It's… I just don't like it."

_Because she's ashamed of you, _House's mind whispered. He ignored it and replied, "Fine." Again, he was a realist. He was crippled. Therefore, he was a cripple. It was a crude term, but hey, he was the crudest person he knew. Cameron shouldn't be surprised.

She stared at him for a few heartbeats before reaching out and grabbing the TV remote. "You want to watch something?" Obviously the conversation was over.  
"Do I ever." House sighed.

Cameron turned on the television. "Any suggestions?" she asked.

"Eh, just flip around."

Cameron switched the channels until she gasped. "Oh, look. _Friends _reruns."

"Fine by me. Jennifer Aniston is smoking hot." House remarked.

Cameron laughed. "Is this what you do on all your dates? Tell the girl about how hot some other girl is?"

"Well, on most of my dates, I don't pay for enough time to do any talking." he said sardonically, with a touch of bitter realism audible to Cameron.

The dark-haired immunologist smiled pityingly. "Right."

The episode played on. It was the episode where Rachel found out that Ross had cheated on her. "I always hated this episode." groaned House.

"You actually watched _Friends?_" asked Cameron, raising her eyebrows.

"A little bit. Just for Jennifer Aniston," he added quickly. "Her nipples are always showing, did you notice?"

"Okay, fair enough. Why do you hate this episode?" Cameron inquired. "I think it's sad."

"It's just annoying. Ross was an ass. And so are the others, for listening in. Although," House added after a moment, "I would probably do the same. But I'm an ass too, so that's all right."

"You're on Rachel's side?"

"You're not?"

"Of course I am; Ross _was _an ass." agreed Cameron. "But I thought you would be on Ross's side. You know, having sex with attractive women and all. I thought you'd be all for that."

"I am. But he was dating Rachel." House reminded her. "And he was being such an ass by getting in the way of her work. _Nothing _should come before your work."

"_Nothing?_" She was leaning in.

"Most things." he corrected himself, staring into her eyes, the colour of the sea, and he was lost out on a battered sailboat, a wounded sailor who didn't want to screw things up again.

"What about me?" Her lips were seconds away.

"We'll see." House replied. Their lips met and he closed his eyes.

The pizza delivery boy came twenty odd minutes later and rang the doorbell six times, but neither of them heard him. They had gone to the bedroom. The pizza box was left abandoned on the doorstep, much like the episode of _Friends _blaring on the television. Rachel and Ross's problems went unresolved, but House and Cameron's problems melted away like ice left outdoors on a hot day.


End file.
